Biography at time of Harkness Fellowship: John Hobbs, a 2001–02 Commonwealth Fund Harkness Fellow in Health Care Policy, is a manager in the Sector Policy Directorate of the New Zealand Ministry of Health (MOH). Most recently he was responsible for managing a team that developed policy to implement the Labour Government’s 2000 health reform package. In his 10-year tenure at the Ministry of Health Hobbs has held numerous management, advisory, and analyst positions. He has also served as an analyst in the Treasury and as an investigating officer for the Department of Labor. Hobbs’ policy expertise lies in the application of economic concepts and frameworks to address policy problems, use of financial analysis to develop policy initiatives and business plans for publicly owned commercial entities, and knowledge of economy-wide linkages and realities in the development of public policy.

Project: Hobbs’ project aimed to evaluate the extent to which e-mail is used between physicians and patients in the Partners HealthCare System, and to identify interventions that might promote increased use of this form of communication. A survey was administered to nearly 100 primary care physicians in ten different practices, as part of a broader evaluation of an information technology platform being put in place. The survey explored physicians’ use of email with patients, and the challenges and opportunities they perceive as it becomes more common.

Mission

The mission of The Commonwealth Fund is to promote a high-performing health care system that achieves better access, improved quality, and greater efficiency, particularly for society's most vulnerable, including low-income people, the uninsured, minority Americans, young children, and elderly adults.